CAIRO: The commander of the Egyptian Air Force, Mohamed Abbas Helmy, affirmed Egypt’s ability to confront threats to national security.
During a speech on Air Force Day, he said: “Egypt will have air forces capable of reaching the farthest ranges to confront what threatens Egypt’s national security.
“To further acquire and exchange experiences and skills, friendly countries have participated in many joint exercises inside and outside the country,” he said, adding that events taking place in neighboring countries, including the need to strike at terrorist organizations, in addition to technological developments in weapons systems and aviation, were motivations for modernizing the air force. 
Helmy said that as a result of the Jan. 25 and June 30 revolutions, and the change in the balance of power in the Middle East region, Egypt faced new challenges and threats, increasing the need to secure its defenses both internally and externally.
The air force is a central body in securing Egypt’s borders, in close cooperation with the rest of the armed forces.
“The prominent role of our air force was also evident through its active participation in the … ongoing efforts to eliminate terrorist elements in North and Central Sinai, in the areas of Rafah, Sheikh Zuweid and Al-Arish, as well as combating the infiltration of terrorist elements across the borders of neighboring countries, to dry up sources of terrorism and work decisively to destroy terrorist outposts,” he said.
“The air force also monitors, tracks and combats illegal immigration attempts, which affect Egyptian national security, in coordination with all elements of the armed forces.”